Ricki Lake in Irish TV controversy over airing home birth clip

Ricki Lake is confused by the Irish "Late Late Show's" decision not to air a clip of her home birth

Actress and documentary filmmaker Ricki Lake is angry with Irish “Late Late Show” host Ryan Tubridy for deciding not to air a clip of her home birth.

Lake was in Dublin to speak on behalf of the Home Birth Association of Ireland at a charity screening of her documentary “The Business of Being Born,” and appeared on the late night show on Friday night.

The American actress was told that a clip from her film of Lake giving birth to her son Owen in a bathtub at her New York apartment eight years ago was going to be shown. But Tubridy decided to can it after consulting the studio audience.

Lake was surprised by the “Late Late Show’s” decision not to air the clip, and has described it as “ridiculous.”

During the interview with the former talk show host, Tubridy said he had the clip and asked the audience if they wanted to see it. Though response was about 50/50, he decided not to show it, even when pressed by Lake to do so later in the show.

While speaking at the Home Birth conference later on, Lake, who is an advocate for home birth, said she did not understand why the Irish late night host “pulled the rug out.”

“He prepped like he was going to show it, and I said, ‘Wow, on late night TV you’re going to show nipples’, and then he kind of dissed me.

“There is nothing gross about it at all . . . I wouldn’t have a problem if he showed it. I don’t know why he set me up to set it up. It was strange how it was handled.”

Home Birth Association spokeswoman Krysia Lynch-Rybaczuk told the Irish Times that Ireland’s national broadcaster RTÉ “bottled it” by failing to air the clip.

“What was the problem?” she asked. “Was it nudity or a woman giving birth as nature intended?”

An RTÉ spokeswoman said the video was lined up to be shown, but a decision was made during the program not to air it. “It wasn’t decided against for any particular reason except that the conversation changed direction and Ryan no longer felt it was appropriate to slot it in,” she said.

Ricki Lake is confused by the Irish "Late Late Show's" decision not to air a clip of her home birth